Football - Coles prepared for Pirates test

Exeter captain Danny Coles believes their opening day clash with Bristol Rovers will be the perfect test to start the season.

Coles' former side have been tipped by many to challenge at the top of the League Two table and their trip to St James Park gives the Grecians the chance to see how they measure up against John Ward's promotion hopefuls.

"It's always great to play against your former team and it'll be a really good game for us to start the season," he told the club's official website.

"Bristol Rovers will be one of the contenders and pushing for promotion, so to play against them on the first day is a good way to start. We'll be looking to get the three points and go from there.

"For this division, they've got some strong players and they'll probably add to that before the start of the season. They'll be one of the favourites with the bookies, so it'll be a good test for us."